130 



HOUSES IN SINDH. 



Buildings in Sindh are generally of unburned 

 brick, as in Eg}7pt. The larger ones are 

 mostly arched, from the difficulty of procur- 

 ing timber sufficiently large for beams. The 

 door-ways too are arched, and the arches 

 and domes appear to be well-constructed and 

 very durable, judging from the numerous an- 

 cient tombs in the vicinity of Sukkur and 

 Roree. The smaller dwelling-houses are all 

 flat-roofed, having projecting eaves, two or 

 three feet in width, of light material, as a pro- 

 tection against sun and rain. Ventilation is 

 much attended to in all classes of dwellings. 

 The smaller houses have generally openings 

 on the roof for that purpose, admitting both 

 light and air ; these are shaped thus, and are 

 called '' Bad Gir,^^ literally, " wind catchers." 



The larger houses — I refer to those of the 

 Ameers — have arched apertures over all the 



